Skiing & Winter Sports

What’s better than backcountry powder shared with a couple of good friends? What beats chasing your buddies through the trees, sharing great lines on open slopes and watching your mates “pop” off bumps into the “pow”? Now, if that though brings a smile, broaden the picture to include 12 good friends. Think about a day of great powder shared with the 12 people you most like to ski or ride with. Then expand that thought to three or four days in succession. Oh, yes, and throw in some uphill tranportation that gives you 12 to 15 great runs a day.

If it seems like a wild dream, it’s not. Snowcat skiers and boarders are doing it every year.

Assemble your own group to share a snowcat and two guides and to control the pace of each day’s skiing. The cat rides back up the mountain become almost as much fun as the runs down, filled with the old lies and jokes and stories that you all enjoy sharing. Evenings in the bar at the lodge playing pool or darts for “shots” or soaking in the hot tub just continue the fun of the day. Our “Favorite Chatter Creek Photos” (favorite-chatter-creek-photos.blogspot.com). were taken by some old friends who go cat skiing together every year.

Many cat skiing operators in BC encourage groups. At least two operators offer no particular incentive to group leaders, but point out the advantage to having companions that know one another and are all compatible skiers and riders. However, at least three BC operators provide group organizers a free seat and one operator offers two free seats (take 12 people, pay for 10). Other operators offer a discount ranging from $1200 per day, to $1500 for a 4-day tour. Typically, it’s all or nothing and the group size must be 12 to qualify for a discount. As nice as it is to get a great discount, Group Organizers shopping for a cat skiing tour should think about group discounts last, after making a short list of operators having terrain and skiing conditions that best suits their group’s needs.